Manage your subscription

Ivory crackdown

CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, ordered its toughest action yet against trade in elephant ivory on 18 March, when it demanded that all African nations ban domestic ivory sales. Previously, only international trade in ivory has been outlawed.

CITES put off a decision on whether to allow a one-off sale of stockpiled ivory from southern African states (New Scientist, 20 March, p 10). But officials at a CITES standing committee meeting in Geneva concluded that the sale would not be safe while uncontrolled domestic trade in countries such as Nigeria, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic …